I write as a LL who has also been a tenant in the past.
See my earlier posts about sensible and aware LLs always getting vacant possession BEFORE marketing properties.
People fail to realise that by nature the LL-tenant relationship is never quite equal. Tenants know they never have long term security and might have to move. Given that LLs do need to be able to sell their properties and liquidise their assets, this is always necessary, but doesn’t make it more pleasant as a fact and crucially, the ways this occurs can be very unpleasant for tenants, which many seem to think tenants should just accept as givens.
Being given notice, regardless of whether a property is being sold is always unpleasant, if you like your home and hoped to stay there. However nicely, politely and considerately it’s done, it’s not nice. Rightly, there are minimum notice periods and these have to work for both LLs and tenants. 2 months might sound a long period, but isn’t if you have a family and have to find somewhere else and factor in things like schools, workplaces and particularly when there are shortages.
Tenants almost always worry about moving out. They worry about references that will be given and about deposits being returned and finding another deposit ahead of having the first returned. They worry about requirements mentioned in the contract such as professional carpet cleaning and gardening requirements. Some of these things are not legal requirements for renters, but lots of LLs and agencies still out them in. So, as the point of heading towards vacating, the relationship isn’t equal. The tenant feels they must please the LL or agent to ensure they get all their deposit back and get the reference they need. And it’s in this context that some tenants find themselves also being asked to accommodate property viewings. So saying ‘no’ or significantly restricting when they can happen often feels like it will jeopardise the reference or deposit. So often a LL or agent asks and asks in such a way as to make it feel compulsory and that a tenant will lose out by saying no.
Again, there is no requirement to allow viewings.
People poo-pooing Ops desire not to have viewings and calling her difficult, forget that at least some level of tidying is needed. They forget that viewings mean strangers coming into your private bathroom and toilet and probably looking in your cupboards. It feels like a violation, especially if you can’t be there. Then there’s the need to go out - especially in winter, exactly where do you go, for perhaps 90 minutes? It’s not always straightforward especially with several children. It might involve spending money. So, no, people aren’t going to welcome it as a chance to have a tidy up and see it as a positive. It’s a definite negative and imposition and bearing in mind some agents or LLs want to show people multiple times a week over multiple weeks, there is scope for real abuse. Remmeber, lots of tenants are vulnerable. They might not know their rights and unfortunately some LLs or agents don’t treat them or speak to them with respect about these issues.
Anything about marketing and property viewings should be phrased as a question, where it’s clear that there is always the option to say ‘no’ without any impact whatsoever. However, this rarely happens but instead, tenants feel coerced into agreeing to things they don’t want. And that’s where the problem lies.
As a LL I would never try to sell a property with tenants. It’s mostly because it’s impossible to know for sure when tenants will vacate or if legal eviction proceedings which can h can take a year will be needed, meaning exchange is impossible. But it’s also because tentnas are paying rent and entitled to quiet enjoyment of the property until the day they leave. Therefore, I would always factor in giving notice (and ideally not doing this but waiting for a tenant to choose to vacate) and having a period with the property empty and no rental income, whilst being decorated and then marketed. It is no good for LLs to say they can’t afford to have the property empty so need to market whilst rented. If that’s the case, they can’t afford to be LLs. The tenant pays rent and should receive the property without interruption. To try to market it and expect them to tidy or to go out whilst viewings happen or. Or have strangers traipsing through the property they pay for……in my view it’s tantamount to theft.
So Op, especially with summer holidays coming up and kids at home, I’d stick to your guns and say that ‘no’ you’re not prepared to have to vacate your home with your full brood and wander the streets whilst they look. You’ve paid and it’s your property until you vacate. They will have to wait. It’s not awkwardness. It’s wanting what you’ve paid for and a secure home without strangers coming in is very much that.